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M egalodon. Video clip (3:19). http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=32EA9E55-5FBC-4E5E-97B4-D956906915B3&blnFromSearch=1&productcode=US. Megalodon. Megalodon ( Carcharodon megalodon ) is another extinct shark species that is the largest predatory shark known.
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Video clip (3:19) • http://player.discoveryeducation.com/index.cfm?guidAssetId=32EA9E55-5FBC-4E5E-97B4-D956906915B3&blnFromSearch=1&productcode=US
Megalodon • Megalodon (Carcharodonmegalodon) is another extinct shark species that is the largest predatory shark known. • Megalodon occurred from 28-1.5 mya and at approximately16m long (and with a mass estimated at 47 metrics tonnes) it resembled a massive great white shark and was the top ocean predator of its era.
“Megalodon (gray and red) with the whale shark (violet), great white shark (green), and a human (blue) for scale. Note: The maximum size attained by C. megalodon is indicated by the 20 m scale.” From Wikipedia. http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/07/Megalodon_scale1.png/220px-Megalodon_scale1.png
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Megalodon_shark_jaws_museum_of_natural_history_068.jpg/300px-Megalodon_shark_jaws_museum_of_natural_history_068.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7a/Megalodon_shark_jaws_museum_of_natural_history_068.jpg/300px-Megalodon_shark_jaws_museum_of_natural_history_068.jpg http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/71/Megalodon_tooth_ruler.jpg/220px-Megalodon_tooth_ruler.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1f/Carcharodon_megalodon.jpg/220px-Carcharodon_megalodon.jpghttp://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1f/Carcharodon_megalodon.jpg/220px-Carcharodon_megalodon.jpg
Megalodon • Megalodon preyed on anything it wanted including pinnipeds, sea turtles, and frequently whales. • Fossil whales skeletons contemporaneous with Megalodon show bite damage clearly inflicted by Megalodon.
Megalodon • Megalodon when attacking large prey is believed to have focused its attack on the rib cage area crushing the delicate organs within. • It also is believed to have bitten off appendages immobilizing the prey.
Megalodon • Megalodon’s bite force has been estimated at up to 10 times that of a great white shark and up to five times that of a Tyrannosaurusrex. • The large serrated teeth were deep rooted and Megalodon likely behaved like a great white which shakes its head after biting thus sawing through its prey.
Extinction of Megalodon • The formation of the Isthmus of Panama three mya resulted in large changes in ocean currents and reduced worldwide ocean temperatures. • Megalodon preferred warmer sea temperatures and the loss of warm water habitat coupled with a substantial decline in the diversity of whales (also as a result of changing ocean temperatures) is most likely the cause of the species extinction.